QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
SACS, PROBATION, AND ACCREDITATION

Q: What is SACS?

A: SACS, a membership association that Southern Miss belongs to, stands for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. SACS awards accreditation to southern United States universities and schools that meet good education standards.

Q: What is accreditation?

A: Accreditation is a way of telling the public that a program or university meets certain administrative, academic, and financial standards. It helps keep the quality of education high. Many products or industries all over the world have similar ways of making sure standards are high; for example, the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval" means a product you are buying has met certain quality standards. Accreditation is basically a "seal of approval" that lets students know that a school is run the proper way and provides a good education. Southern Miss is an accredited university and is committed to keeping its accreditation.

Many programs also can be reviewed and accredited by organizations in specific educational or disciplinary areas. Southern Miss has program accreditations for 98 percent of the programs eligible for such accreditations. Examples of accredited programs include Nursing, Computer Science, Construction Management, Business, Education, Public Health, Medical Technology, and many more.

Q: How does a university get accredited?

A: A university must submit documentation to prove it meets all the standards and principles. The review cycle covers a 10-year period. It takes a couple of years to get ready for each review. Recently, SACS implemented a new process for accreditation. The new process requires a university to submit written materials to SACS, followed by a site visit approximately six months later. Southern Miss is scheduled to submit materials under the new process and principles in November 2005, with the site visit scheduled for spring 2006.

The SACS probation is the result of a separate review of just a few standards. Separate documentation will be submitted for these areas as requested by SACS.

Q: What is probation?

A: When SACS is concerned that a university isn't meeting all the standards, or doesn't have the proper documents to show that it is in compliance with the standards, it can send the university a private notice, send a public warning, or put it on probation for a period of time (usually one year or two years). In December 2004, SACS decided to put Southern Miss on probation for 12 months. SACS wants more evidence over a longer period of time that Southern Miss is assessing and reporting improvements of our educational programs on a comprehensive, university-wide basis.

Q: Why didn't Southern Miss meet the requirements regarding institutional effectiveness?

A: Southern Miss was not put on probation because of any problems with academic quality or financial management. SACS simply did not have the evidence they needed regarding comprehensive, university-wide program assessments.

Q: Does that mean probation isn't that serious?

A: Southern Miss takes probation very seriously. Dr. Shelby Thames, president of the university, has made the removal of probation status the highest priority. In fact, oversight for all accreditation has been moved to the Office of the President, where he will be assisted by the assistant to the president for accreditation, planning, and articulation. In addition, a position dedicated to assisting faculty with program assessment has been created. Many processes are already in place to provide the evidence that SACS needs. Therefore, Southern Miss fully expects the probation to be lifted after the 12 month period elapses.

Q: What does probation mean for my degree?

A: Southern Miss is a world-class university. None of the information that we must supply to SACS suggests that our educational programs are not of high quality. Anyone with Southern Miss degree has evidence of an excellent education!

Q: Where can I get more information about what Southern Miss is doing to lift the probation?

A: Southern Miss will keep the public posted about activities related to accreditation. Information about our plans and progress related to assessment or institutional effectiveness can be found at www.usm.edu/ie. This Web site is updated regularly as needed.